'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
WWE Hall of Famer Eric Bischoff recently gave his take on Gunther's controversial victory over Randy Orton. The 24-year veteran lost to the Ring General in the final of the King of the Ring Tournament in Saudi Arabia.
The finish saw Gunther secure a pinfall win over his legendary opponent in a first-time-ever singles match between the two men. Replays showed that Orton lifted his left shoulder before the three-count, prompting Triple H to hint at a possible rematch.
Fans were torn on whether Orton was supposed to raise his shoulder off the mat as part of the storyline. On his 83 Weeks show, Bischoff said the finish must have been planned because The Viper is too experienced to make such rookie errors.
Trending
"Randy doesn't make mistakes like that. That's not a Randy Orton mistake. I firmly believe it was part of a plan. It was part of the process. It's just more depth to a great story. It's just more for Gunther to get over on. Did he really win? Did he not really win?" said Bischoff. [39:46 – 40:06]
Gunther defeated Sheamus, Kofi Kingston, and Jey Uso en route to beating Orton in the King of the Ring final. In the women's division, Nia Jax recorded a dominant win over Lyra Valkyria in the Queen of the Ring final.
Eric Bischoff elaborates on Randy Orton botch speculation
Over the last two decades, Randy Orton has cemented his status as one of WWE's all-time greats. Eric Bischoff even believes the 14-time world champion has surpassed WWE legend Shawn Michaels from an in-ring perspective.
Bischoff further explained why it is unrealistic to think that a veteran like Orton accidentally got his shoulder up during the finish. He strongly believed this was all part of a bigger storyline that was yet to unravel.
"Because Randy is so flawless and it would be such a rookie mistake, there's no way I'm going to accept that it was, 'Oh, well, it happened, now we've gotta make chicken salad out of chicken s**t.' No, I think they planned a lobster dinner from the get-go," stated Bischoff. [40:27 – 40:39]
As a result of his victory, Gunther will challenge for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at SummerSlam on August 3.
What did you make of the King of the Ring finish? Hit the Discuss button and let us know.
Please credit 83 Weeks and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.
